The inventors of the present disclosure have been focusing research in the area of resistive memory within the field of integrated circuit technology. While much of resistive memory technology is in the development stage, various technological concepts for resistive memory have been demonstrated by the inventors, and are in one or more stages of verification to prove or disprove associated theory(ies). The inventors believe that resistive memory technology promises to hold substantial advantages over semiconductor transistor-based technologies in the electronics industry.
The semiconductor transistor has been the basis of electronic memory and processing devices for the past several decades. Over time, advancement in technology has roughly followed Moore's Law, which predicts an increase in a number of semiconductor devices, such as transistors, that can be fabricated on a given geometric area of a semiconductor chip. One implication of increasing number of semiconductor devices is increasing memory capacity and processing power for the semiconductor chip and associated electronic devices. Moore's Law has been fairly accurate at predicting the advancement of semiconductor technology up to the present.
The inventors of the disclosed subject matter have worked with two-terminal memory devices, such as resistive memory, as a replacement for three-terminal semiconductor transistors. Based on their experience in the field, mathematical predictions and test results, the inventors believe that two-terminal memory devices can overcome drawbacks of three-terminal semiconductor transistors in various categories related to performance and reliability. Examples include write, erase and access times, data reliability, device density, and others. Accordingly, the inventors are in the process of discovering new ways to create or operate two-terminal memory technologies and how they can replace conventional micro electronic systems and devices.